This morning I will go downtown to Michael’s Café and Bakery, the best place in the state for the perfect paczki. Although I’m already salivating over the lemon-filled ones, my main purpose is to sing paczki carols, parodies to familiar tunes about the delectable gems baked fresh this morning. Business persons on a mission to pick up dozens for their office personnel are surprised to see and hear a group of us singing away. They smile broadly and give a little laugh. Sometimes they join the singing while they wait their order. Catching our positive energy, they’re reminded that humor and surprise add to life. Singing paczki carols becomes a little way to bring about the Kingdom so full of life and laughter and good things. May there be paczki in heaven.
“To live is to be slowly born.”
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Sunflower Seeds
Celebrating Everyday Spirituality
3 Responses
Paczki on Fat Tuesday is such a great tradition in our area. I believe there will be paczki in heaven. Thanks for sharing this fun experience.
I bought the LAST box of Paczki at the Giant grocery store on Sunday and shared all the contents with two sets of neighbors so they could experience a Polish tradition! Here in PA the bigger item is something called fassnachts … the spelling is close though may not be accurate. There was a platter of them served to the Jesuits at breakfast and again out at lunch. They look similar to paczki but lack the middle fillings (that’s the yummy part!) and the outer sugar. I gather some Germans put molasses or syrup on them. Our King Cakes never arrived on time … so we may be eating them on Ash Wednesday!
Here in New Orleans it’s King Cake. Of course they’ve been in the stores since January 6th, the Feast of the Three Kings when the Carnival season began, but they are the signature treat of the day for Mardi Gras. On Saturday after the Endymion Parade, we went to the Irish Dominicans’ house for vegetable soup and king cake. Our Sister Jennifer and her sister, Sue, were with us. Sue found the baby in her piece of cake. In keeping with the tradition, Sue bought the next king cake to share at our house.